Fantasy football: Old, reliable players paying off

Wednesday

Nov 14, 2012 at 11:34 AMNov 14, 2012 at 11:34 AM

By Joey Baskerville, GHNS

There’s something gratifying when, in a fantasy world where Danny Woodhead (NE) could threaten to be the top fantasy running back for the week (he still finished tied for third in Week 10), the old and reliable fantasy studs come through and have great games.

Not good. Great.

Adrian Peterson (MIN) and Tony Gonzalez (ATL) have been among the best in their positions in fantasy football and real football for a while now. Tony G is 36 years old and he’s the second-best fantasy tight end in the league.

Let that sink in for a second. I think fantasy observers at this point of the year have let the shock wear off, but what he’s been doing has been nothing short of incredible.

Last week, Gonzalez was a top-10 fantasy player with 24 points in standard leagues — even better in PPR (points per reception) leagues.

Then there’s Peterson — I’m no longer convinced he’s an cyborg; he’s in fact an alien — who is No. 1 running back in fantasy after 10 weeks. People drafted him in the second round or later!

It’s just nice to see players be consistent in an otherwise volatile game known as fantasy football.

Underachieving “studs”

For all the old, reliable fantasy players, there’s the underachievers. The guys you had high expectations for but struggled to do great things on a more consistent basis.

I failed to mention Drew Brees (NO) regarding old, reliable players only because quarterbacks tend to be more prone to solid performances.

It’s harder for running backs and tight ends to be consistently great in a passing league.

That said, Brees has been great as usual this year. And the matchup against Oakland is just too good for Brees not to be on the list.

And I guess I’ll go ahead and pick the top players in Thursday’s game too. I will say, from a fantasy standpoint, Reggie Bush (MIA) and CJ Spiller (BUF) do make this an interesting contest, especially since both have been doubted on whether or not they can be feature backs.